Pence needs to do more than not endorse Trump-he needs to remind voters Trump attempted a coup and targeted him and his family for death
Time for Pence to work to defeat Trump
Donald Trump attempted a coup and almost killed Mike Pence and his family on Jan 6 because Pence refused to put Trump over the US Constitution. In fact, that is what Pence has said over the past year as he spoke of Trump pressuring him to “essentially to overturn the [2020] election” and declaring that on Jan 6, Trump’s “reckless words endangered my family.”
However, when Pence announced on Friday he was not endorsing Trump in 2024—which truly is an astounding development—he cited policy disagreements such as “walking away from our commitment to confronting the national debt” Even when it came to Jan 6, Pence spoke in dispassionate terms of “our differences on my constitutional duties that I exercised January 6th.”
Pence—who during the first GOP presidential debate last year pledged to endorse Trump even if the former President was convicted of a crime—then declared he had now reached the conclusion that he can no longer in “good conscience” support the person who once was his running mate. This is unprecedented in US political history.
But this is not enough. Pence must do more to protect our Republic by repeatedly reminding non-MAGA conservatives and independents between now and Election Day of the danger Trump poses to our Republic.
This is not a big ask given Pence has done just that over the past year—to little media coverage. But now with Trump as the GOP nominee, he must bring a sense of urgency to his warnings.
For example, when Pence announced his run for President in June 2023, with a great deal of passion he told voters about Jan 6, “The American people deserve to know, on that day, President Trump also demanded I choose between him and the Constitution.” Pence continued, “I chose the Constitution, and I always will.” The former Indiana governor then added powerfully about Trump, “I believe that anyone who puts themselves over the Constitution should never be president of the United States. And anyone who asks someone else to put them over the Constitution should never be president of the United States again.”
Pence made that point even more bluntly in August 2023, stating on Fox News that, “The American people deserve to know that President Trump and his advisers didn’t just ask me to pause. They asked me to reject votes … essentially to overturn the [2020] election.”
There is Pence telling America that Trump pressured him to join in his coup and put loyalty to Trump over the US Constitution. That’s far more compelling reason to not endorse Trump than the policy disagreements cited by Pence last week.
And then there’s the fact that Trump’s actions leading up to the Jan 6 attack put Pence and his family’s life at risk. Indeed, Pence told us that point blank in March 2023 at the annual Gridiron Club Dinner in Washington, DC. where he first stated, “Trump was wrong. I had no right to overturn the election.” Pence then added the bone chilling line that Trump’s “reckless words endangered my family and everyone at the Capitol that day.”
Pence was not being hyperbolic. As we know from the evidence gathered by the House committee investigating the Jan 6 attack, after Pence rebuffed Trump’s pressure to block the Jan 6 congressional certification of Biden’s victory, Trump added lines to the speech he delivered at the Ellipse on Jan 6 to his angry supporters repeatedly demanding Pence join his effort to overturn the election.
And during the Jan 6 attack itself, Trump—after learning that the crowd was violently attacking the Capitol—took to social media to slam Pence by name for refusing to block the certification, writing, “Mike Pence didn’t have the courage to do what should have been done to protect our Country and our Constitution.” That post led to an angry surge in the crowd attacking the Capitol—as documented by the Jan 6 committee. As a result, just before 2:30 p.m. on Jan. 6, Pence and his family were being hustled to a new, more secure position in the Capitol with angry MAGA attackers just 40 feet away. One wrong turn and Pence and his family could’ve been killed by Trump’s terrorists—and Pence knows this.
Just as alarming was testimony elicited by the Jan 6 committee that when Trump learned his supporters during the Jan 6 attack were chanting “Hang Mike Pence,” Trump responded, “Mike deserves it.”
Add to that another truly jaw-dropping development from Jan 6 hearings that “a confidential informant from the Proud Boys told the FBI the Proud Boys would have killed Mike Pence if given a chance.” Yes, the Trump loving Proud Boys were going to literally kill Pence to help Trump remain in office. And how has Trump responded, he has repeatedly vowed to pardon the leaders of the Proud Boys and the Oath Keepers--who have been convicted of seditious conspiracy—as we all as the MAGA terrorists who savagely beat police offices on Jan 6 in the service of Trump’s attempted coup.
Pence has already done the hard part in terms of GOP politics: He has publicly broken from Trump. But given the danger Trump poses, Pence needs to do far more. No, he will never move the MAGA hardcore traitors. (And yes, I view them as traitors to our Republic.) But As a long-time Republican, Pence can speak to those mainstream patriotic conservatives who were thinking of “holding their noses” and voting for Trump to make the case they shouldn’t.
Pence can also likely reach some non-MAGA Evangelicals who may have voted for Trump in the past but were disgusted by Trump’s attempted coup. And Pence could make a compelling case to some right leaning independents by the fact that he knows Trump well as his former VP but is telling America Trump is so dangerous he should not be back in the White House.
The 2024 election will be close and Pence can play a meaningful role in defending our democratic Republic by helping defeat the man who waged a coup and put the life of his family in danger. The best part is that Pence already has the perfect message. It’s what he said about Trump when announcing his 2024 presidential run: “Anyone who puts themselves over the Constitution should never be president of the United States. And anyone who asks someone else to put them over the Constitution should never be president of the United States again.” Amen.
I have limited comments to my articles for the time being to paid subscribers because the despicable MAGA trolls have been swarming. I truly don't care what they have to say. To me anyone who still supports Trump is a traitor--they are openly supporting a terrorist who waged the Jan 6 attack. It's akin to supporting Bin Laden after 9/11. Why would I want these people to post here or to be able to harass people defending our Republic from the Fascist threat known as MAGA?!
Dean while I agree, Pence needs to do more, I think we grossly overestimate his ability to show courage or character. He is, and always has been, a mediocre little man who was able to hide behind right wing talking points and the dominating presence of Mother. We can only imagine what it was like in his house when he was a child for him to be so intimidated by his wife when as an evangelical Christian male he should be the boss and she should submit to his every whim.